ADHD in the News 2016-02-25
Early Behavior Therapy Found to Aid Children With A.D.H.D.
Children with attention-deficit problems improve faster when the first treatment they receive is behavioral — like instruction in basic social skills — than when they start immediately on medication, a new study has found. Beginning with behavioral therapy is also a less expensive option over time, according to a related analysis.
Could Adults' Expectations Drive Up ADHD Diagnoses in Kids?
Rates of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) have risen globally, and adults' unreasonable expectations of young children could be one reason why, researchers suggest. Reporting in the Feb. 22 issue of JAMA Pediatrics, researchers from the University of Miami point to evidence that the rise in ADHD diagnoses coincided with ever-growing demands on young children's attention and focus.
Not Only Do Opposites Not Attract, But Just the Opposite
A study in this month’s issue of JAMA Psychiatry looked at 707,263 Swedish people, all with at least one psychiatric disease: ADHD, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, anxiety and depression, obsessive compulsive disorder, autism spectrum disorders, and others...People with psychiatric disorders were more likely to end up with someone with a psychiatric disorder, and the chances were higher (marginally) that they’d share the same illness.
Why Are People With ADHD Always Late?
Chronic lateness can be one of the most annoying symptoms of ADHD, both for people with ADHD and those who have to put up with us! But why is ADHD so often associated with being late? There are several different reasons.
ADHD and girls: It’s not what you expect
ADHD has been thought of as a disorder for males since the diagnosis was invented, but that stereotype is inaccurate. And it is changing, according to the results of a very large, population-based study of children aged 5-17 years old, in which parents surveyed from 2003 to 2011 reported a much greater rise in ADHD diagnoses among their daughters than among their sons. Specifically, reported diagnoses increased 55 percent for girls compared to 40 percent for boys according to the study, published last month in the Journal of Clinical Psychiatry.
Squirm with purpose: Research shows fidgeting is helpful for ADHD patients
New research by [Michael] Kofler at FSU's Children's Learning Clinic shows that children often fidget or move when they are trying to solve a problem, and that movement may have a positive effect on children with ADHD...Previous work by Kofler and his colleagues...showed that kids with ADHD did better on working memory tests when they moved more...But they did not know whether the "hyperactive" movement helped working memory specifically.
10 commonly abused psychology words — and what they really mean
If you're like many people, you can be a little OCD about language, but at the same time you can go ADHD and lose the thread and use some words loosely. Like you're kinda bipolar or schizophrenic about it, ya know, and maybe you get paranoid that someone's gonna go psycho on you about it. Well, maybe it's time to know what all these mental-health-related words are really supposed to mean, and what the disorders they name really involve.
Bullied preemies may develop mental illness as adults, study shows
Babies born at an extremely low birth weight (ELBW) are miracles, but they are more likely to be bullied as children, and this can significantly increase their risk for mental health problems as adults. Not only that, but the more they were bullied as children, the more likely they are to develop problems such as depression, anxiety, antisocial behavior or attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) as adults, says a new study from McMaster University's Michael G. DeGroote School of Medicine.
What to tell parents of hyperactive children
Primary care physicians can help parents understand and remember that ADHD can be successfully managed through behavioral training, for both the child and parents, and medication. The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recommends that health care professionals also be aware of psychological resources available in the community, and be prepared to refer children, particularly young children in preschool, for behavior therapy.
Children With Chronic Headaches at Higher Risk of Mental Illness
Although psychiatric comorbidities are common in adults with CDH, their prevalence in the pediatric population remains unclear, wrote Hope O'Brien, MD, and Shalonda Slater, PhD, from the Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center in Ohio. The researchers found that psychiatric disorders occurred in up to 65.5% of children and adolescents with migraine, the most common type of chronic daily headache. The prevalence was significantly higher than that previously reported by Dr Slater in 2012 (29.6%).